Remember that one day when you could wake up without an alarm? When you would get your favorite bowl of cereal and sit between the hours of 8 and 12? This is a blog dedicated to the greatest time of our childhood: Saturday mornings. The television programs you watched, the memories attached to them, and maybe introducing you to something you didn't realize existed. Updated every weekend.
When Laurie Meadoff visited the
Albany Empire (now Albany Theatre)
in London, she found a thriving and impactful social services and arts program
for the youth there. Inspired, when she returned to New York City in 1985 she
began the CityKids Foundation.
Originally meeting in the basement of a local church, the Foundation invited kids
from different backgrounds to come together and engage with each other through the performing arts. The Foundation
has grown in the years following into an internationally recognized one
dedicated to positive youth development and social emotional learning while
allowing the voices of youth to rise up and be heard.
The Kids (from top): Tito, David, Angelica, Nikki, Susan, Snoopy and John.
After their
first decade in operation, CityKids partnered with Jim Henson Productions to bring their
message to the airwaves. The series followed an interracial group of urban kids
in New York City—Angelica (Cyndi Cartagena), Snoopy (Hassan Elgendi), John (Dulé
Hill), Susan (Anne Ho), Tito (Renoly Santiago), and siblings Nikki (Diana
Smith) and David (Brad Stoll), and Frida (Audrey Ince)—as they dealt with
school and life issues, such as bad grades, damaging rumors, sexism, racism,
financial responsibility, and more. It was the first series targeted for a
teenaged audience by Henson and ABC, who
ultimately picked it up for broadcast.
Dread and Bird.
What made
the series stand out from other similar pro-social shows at the time was the
inclusion of Henson’s Muppets. All-new characters were created that would serve
as kind of a Greek chorus. They were never seen by or interacted with the human
characters, but they would offer commentary on the goings on in the story and
helping to drive home the lessons being conveyed. These Muppets included Dread
(David Rudman), a Rastafarian philosopher that ran a radio show with his
sidekick, a pigeon named Bird (Joey Mazzarino); Captain (Mazzarino), Libido
(John Henson) and Lieutenant (Rudman), who inhabited the head of a particular
character; Dirt Sisters Trish (Mazzarino & Elizabeth Regen) and Toya
(Rudman & Cenophia Mitchell), two girls who always gossiped with each other
over the phone; the Hot Dogs, anthropomorphic hot dogs that would sing songs
from the container they were being served from until a pair of tongs took one
out; Frankie Frank (Rudman), a hot dog rapper and leader of Frankie Frank and
the Footers; and the Koozebanians (Noel MacNeil & Rudman), three aliens
from the planet Kozzebane. David Gumpel served as the Muppet segment supervisor
while Rudman was the puppeteer captain.
Trish and Toya.
CityKids
debuted on ABC on September 18, 1993. The pilot episode itself, the only episode
directed by Savage Steve Holland,
aired as an ABC
Saturday Morning Specialin January featuring different puppet designs.
The series was written by executive producer Adriana Trigiani, Matt Callaway and Jeffrey Solomon, with Susana Preston serving as script
supervisor. The theme and series music were composed by Raliegh Neal II and Malik Yoba. Muriel Stockdale was the costume
designer. Members of the
CityKids foundations appeared on the show as performers, in quick candid interview
segments about the topic at hand, and worked as creative assistants and
production interns. Kate Hillis
served as the coordinator between the Foundation and the production.
Inside the head with Captain, Lieutenant and Libido.
Unfortunately,
the series never seemed to reach its target demographic and ABC cancelled it
after 13 episodes. The Foundation’s website currently hosts all but the pilot
episode on their website, as
well as separate clips of their kids performing from the episodes. The pilot
itself was preserved on the Internet Archive. While only Hill, Santiago and Stoll would go on to have active careers
in showbusiness, the Muppet characters would also go on to have careers recycled
as new characters in various Henson productions.
EPISODE GUIDE: “Pilot” (1/30/93) – While David tries to approach a girl he
likes, Susan deals with racial discrimination and sexual harassment. “Becoming a Man” (9/25/93) – David has ulterior motives for
wanting to have a bar mitzvah. “Get a Job” (10/2/93) – Angelica and John bet to see who can
get and keep a job first. “The Curse of Ali Baba” (10/9/83) – Nikki takes her new
credit card as a license to spend. “Bye, Bye Reputation” (10/16/93) – Rumors spread around school
about Angelica being under the control of the guy she has a crush on. “The Mural” (10/23/93) – A boy asks Tito to paint a mural of
his father, but Tito’s friends are against it as the man was a drug dealer. “Alterations with Attitude” (10/30/93) – David volunteers
for the Big Buddy program and gets saddled with a troublemaker. “Quality Time” (11/13/93) – Snoopy’s friends are suspicious
of his estranged father’s reasons for visiting. “Rooftop Thanksgiving” (11/20/93) – The kids band together
to help a hard-off family have a good holiday. “Pack of Lies” (12/4/93) – Snoopy lies about a family death
to get out of taking a test while Angelica buys something she hopes will help
her attract a guy. “Love Letters on the Hudson” (12/11/93) – Susan plans to
meet her secret admirer on the Hudson River with her friends. “All My Trials” (12/18/93) – Anjelica receives a fine and
summons for improperly disposing of trash. “I Am Woman” (1/29/94) – The boys make fun of Nikki when she
wants to play basketball with them.
B.R.A.T.S.
of the Lost Nebula (later known as Jim Henson’s B.R.A.T.S. of the Lost
Nebula)was a combination puppet and computer animated sci-fi
series. The series was set in a universe that was being dominated by invading
force known as The Shock. Teenaged siblings Zadam (Kirby Morrow) and Triply
(Annick Obonsawin) were spared from the Shock attack on their home world when
their parents sent them to the Lost Nebula. There, on a living planetoid, they encountered
three other similar refugees: mechanically-inclined strongman Duncan (Glen
Cross), the fiercely competitive Ryle (originally named Gnash, voiced by Evan Sabba) and mystical fairy Lavana
(originally named Selene, voiced by Deborah Odell). Together, they decided to band together and form a resistance
movement against the Shock. Aiding them was a long-eared animal named Splock
who had a missile-laden suit of armor, and SMARTS, the smartest computer in the
universe.
The B.R.A.T.S.: Lavana, Zadam, Duncan, Splock, Triply and Ryle.
Despite a
heavy marketing campaign leading up to the premiere of the series, B.R.A.T.S.
was taken off the air after just three weeks. The move came as a surprise
to everyone involved, as they weren’t aware of those plans until the week it
happened. Ironically, that was also the week that TV Guide had selected the series
as one of the Top Ten Children’s Series of the Year. The WB put out assurances
that the series would resume at some unspecified time, however the remainder of
the episodes would only be seen in Canada when the series was broadcast by YTV.
Puppetry of The Shock's leader.
While ratings for the series were
low, ultimately it fell victim to the overall low-ratings of Kids’ WB as a
whole. The programming block had fallen into third place behind FOX Kids and ABC’s One
Saturday Morning. In their attempts to turn their situation around, the
network chose to focus on programming it owned outright. Since B.R.A.T.S. was
a third-party production, it was cut from the network and quietly cancelled. For
various unspecified reasons, Disney, who has
come to own the Jim Henson Company and B.R.A.T.S.
by extension, has deemed it too expensive to release the series onto home
media.
EPISODE GUIDE:
“What Mom Said” (10/10/98) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“Total Bratification” (10/18/98) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“Brain Drain” (10/25/98) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“A Lozian Necessity” (11/1/98) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“Heart Hunters” (12/2/98) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“Punk Chip” (11/12/98) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Runaways” (11/18/98) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“Mutant Freak” (11/25/98) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“Bite for a Day” (12/9/98) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“The Acceptors” (12/30/98) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“Faith” (1/6/99) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“Mom and Dad” (1/13/99) – NO SYNOPSIS AVAILABLE.
“Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1/20/99) – NO SYNOPSIS
AVAILABLE.
One of those mini-movies was Dog City. Dog City was
a film noir parody set in a world entirely populated by anthropomorphic dogs,
inspired by the series of paintings by C.M. Coolidge.
Ace Yu (Kevin Clash)
traveled to the city to take over a bar following the murder of his uncle by
mob boss Bugsy Them
(Henson), whose goons harassed Ace for protection money. The MuppeTelevision portion of the episode
served as a set-up for the mini-movie, complete with an introduction and
guest-appearance by Rowlf the Dog
(Henson). Ace and Kermit
the Frog (also Henson) even made a promo for the episode together. It would
be only one of three segments of the Hour
directed by Henson.
Hour
scored three award nominations, but its ratings were abysmal. It was
cancelled by NBC before its only season even finished. Henson decided he wanted
to get out of the business side of things and entered negotiations to sell his
company to Disney. The deal fell through
when he died suddenly the following year (Disney would later acquire the
Muppets in 2004). The Henson family took over management of the company, with
his son, Brian,
being named president, chairman and CEO at the start of 1991. The younger
Henson set out to make the Henson catalogue of characters work for the company,
which included a deal with FOX
Kids to bring the popular Dog City segment
to their network.
Eliot Shag at his drawing table.
Although it retained the name and
its spoof on the film noir genre, Dog
City underwent some heavy revisions from its original concept. The
anthropomorphic dog motif remained, but the show was basically two-in-one; with
Henson Productions producing puppet
segments and Nelvana producing animated
segments that would air together and play off each other. The puppet segments
followed German Shepherd Eliot Shag (primarily Clash, retained from the special,
with assistance from Don Reardon), an animator who drew the adventures of
private eye Ace Hart (Ron White) in the tough streets of Dog City. Eliot would
often translate his own dilemmas (typically interruptions when he was trying to
work) into the stories and characters surrounding Ace, with the two tales often
running parallel. The two of them would also break the fourth wall and interact
with each other, with Ace giving input over his own story.
Bruno, Colleen, Bowser and Artie all interrupting Eliot.
The puppet segments also featured collie
Colleen Barker (Fran Brill, also from the special), Eliot’s on-and-off
girlfriend; bulldog Bruno (Brian Muehl, who was instructed to emulate Henson in
his performance), the building’s surly and incompetent superintendent; St.
Bernard Bowser (David Rudman), Bruno’s dim-witted assistant; English Springer
Spaniel Artie Springer (Joey Mazzarino), Eliot’s young neighbor and his biggest
admirer; and feline Ms. Fluffé (Kathryn Mullen & Lisa Buckley), Eliot’s aloof
landlady. All of the puppets were recycled from the special and given some
cosmetic makeovers, with Colleen even retaining her name.
Ace, Eddie and Rosie on the case.
Over in Ace’s world, there was Rosie
O’Gravy (Elizabeth Hanna), the beautiful, by-the-book chief of detectives who
also served as Ace’s love-interest. The two exchanged witty barbs and the
affection was often mutual, but Rosie’s first love was the law and would never
hesitate to lock up Ace if the law required it. She was also the most competent cop on the
force, with the rest of the police department being akin to the Keystone Kops. Eddie
(Stuart Stone) was a young and enthusiastic news-pup that often followed Ace on
his cases. Eddie was hungry for knowledge, and always preempted a barrage of
facts with “It’s a well-known fact…”
The cast (from top): Frisky, Bruiser, Rosie, Ace, Barron, Kitty, Leon, Dot, Eddie and Bugsy.
Ace’s chief opponent was Bugsy Vile (John Stocker), the “Dogfather of
Crime”, and his henchmen, including the excitable chihuahua Frisky (James
Rankin); psychotic mongrel Mad Dog (Stephen Ouimette), who could only
communicate through snarling and mauling until a bump on the head (at least
once per episode) turned him articulate; his muscle-bound, though ultimately
kind-hearted, nephew Bruiser (Howard Jerome); and his cat moll Kitty (Tabitha
St. Germain), who actually was the brains behind Bugsy’s plans. Kitty owned the
Kitty Kat Club, which served as the gang’s hideout.
One of Barron's schemes almost saw Rosie marrying him.
Also giving trouble to Ace was German Rottweiler Baron Von Rottweiler
(Dan Hennessey), a stereotypical German villain with a monocle and tailored
suits, and his mute dachshund valet, Leon Burger. As the owner of Rottweiler
Explosives Incorporated, it was rare to not see Barron without some form of
explosive device. Barron’s maniacal schemes, generally involving twisted
science, painted him as more of a spoof of typical James Bond villains. His plans were often
thwarted by his own valet’s love of fetch, which usually resulted in Leon
retrieving some kind of dangerous item.
The second season cast, featuring Terri (bottom), Ms. Fluffé (top), and Eliot's new look.
The show was renewed for two
additional seasons, and both came with some changes. For the second season, the
character of Colleen was dropped, with the in-story explanation of having moved
away, and replaced by Artie’s mother, Terri (still Brill), in an attempt to
have a female character whose identity wasn’t just “Eliot’s girlfriend” and
give Artie some kind of family. Terri was a confident businesswoman and single
mother, which explained why Artie hung out with Eliot so often. Fluffé was
originally intended as a one-off character but was given a recurring role with
Buckley assuming her performance. Bruno
and Bowser were also given larger roles. Eliot was given a new look; his
striped shirt and sweater vest replaced by a t-shirt and open Hawaiian shirt.
On the animated side, O’Gravy was given a rival in the form of Mayor Kickbark
(Ouimette). He was the mayor of Dog City who always undermined O’Gravy either
intentionally or accidentally, hampering investigations. Kickbark was often
accompanied by his flunky, Spunky (Stocker).
The Woof Pack.
For the third season, which was also
the show’s shortest, Dog City’s
format was heavily revamped. The noir spoofing and references were greatly
reduced in favor of science fiction and sitcom elements. The animated segments
were split to include several rotating short slapstick segments that
interjected during the main story: “His Masters Choice Theater”, spoofing Masterpiece Theater, was
hosted by Bugsy from his prison cell and featured sketches starring Frisky; “Rosie
and Dot” had O’Gravy spending time with her niece, Dot (Tara Strong), who often
only said “Why?”; “The Woof Pack” saw the return of superhero guest-character
the Watch Dog now leading a team of heroes in a spoof of the genre; “The
Adventures of Moogie” gave Artie’s favorite chew toy his own spotlight
(narrated and “animated” by Artie in a slightly different style); and “Yves and
Steven” (pronounced like “even Steven”), where literal cat burglar Yves (Rino
Romano) ended up being foiled by dimwitted, overweight guard dog, Steven
(George Buza). Each segment had its own title card introducing the shift in
focus from the main story.
Yves and Steven.
In true Dog City fashion, the new segments were introduced to the audience
by Eliot himself in the first episode of the season. Following the show’s
cancellation, the final episode also served as a series finale; with Eliot and
his characters saying farewell to each other and the audience within context of
the story (Eliot was actually going away on vacation in the story and was going
to miss Ace). All of the animated series regulars made cameos in the episode,
and the segments interjected into the main story rather than being separated as
usual. During the show’s run, it was nominated for several Gemini Awards, winning
one for “Best Children’s Television Programming” for 1993-94. Following its
conclusion in the United States, the show was translated into German, French,
Italian, Danish and Swedish and broadcast internationally.
Rosie and Dot camping out next to Bugsy.
In 1993, Sony Wonder released two VHS
collections of the show. The Big Squeakcontained the episode of the same name and “Boss Bruiser”. Much Ado About Mad Dogalso contained the titular episode, and
“Old Dogs, New Tricks”. In 2006, Australia got a DVD release called Disobedience Schoolthat featured five episodes, including
the titular one. The first five episodes of the German dub of the
show was released to DVD in 2008 by Foreign Media Group. It was re-released by Constructive Media Service in 2009, following their
release of the next five episodes the month before. 1993 also saw Western Publishing
releasing a coloring
book based on the show. In 1994, Golden
Books released an adaptation of
“The Big Squeak” as part of their Golden
Look-Look Books line.
Dog City: The Movie.
Between 2005-2010, the original special, called Dog City: The Movie,
was released to home video without the MuppeTelevision
segments, since they are owned by Disney (Rowlf’s appearance in the actual
film remained, however). HIT Entertainment
released it in the United Kingdom and Lions
Gate Entertainment in the United States. KSS
Films released it in Japan on Laserdisc and was the only release to include
the Muppet segments.
EPISODE GUIDE:
Season 1:
“The Big Squeak” (9/26/92) – Ace and Rosie have to retrieve the city’s
squeaky toys from the clutches of Bugsy.
“Taming of the Screw” (10/3/92) – A loose screw in Eliot’s drawing
table inspires Screwie Louie, a crazy dog whose obsession with screwing things
attracts the attention of Bugsy.
“Meat, the Butcher” (10/10/92) – Ace convinces Eliot to follow his
boss’ wishes and create the violent Meat, but Meat ends up taking over the
story and puts the entire city in peril.
“Disobedience School” (10/17/92) – While Eliot consoles Artie over
having to go to a new school, Ace has to rescue Eddie from Bugsy’s school that
looks to create new gang members early.
“The Dog Pound” (10/31/92) – Eliot being accused of chewing Bruno’s
slipper leads to Ace being framed for a crime he didn’t commit.
“Radio Daze” (11/14/92) – As Eliot’s TV is being haphazardly repaired,
Ace investigates a series of mysterious accidents plaguing one of the radio
shows at WFIDO.
“The Bloodhound” (11/21/92) – Eliot suspects Colleen’s new friend is a
vampire, leading to one plaguing the citizens of Dog City.
“Adventures in Puppysitting” (11/28/92) – As Eliot is talked into
puppysitting Colleen’s nephew, Ace goes up against Puppy-Face Felson who plans
to steal the Hope on a Rope Diamond.
“Ya Gotta Have Hart” (12/12/92) – When Eliot and Ace refuse to change
the show as per the boss’ wishes, they end up getting fired.
“In Your Dreams” (1/9/93) – When Eliot falls asleep at his table, he
ends up inside Dog City in a surreal parallel dimension created by his
subconscious.
“Rocketship K-9” (1/16/93) – Bruno’s beliefs that aliens are invading
has Eliot send Ace to the moon to investigate the disappearance of Arfstrong,
the first mutt on the moon.
“Cats ‘N Dogs” (1/23/93) – Ms. Fluffé fires Bruno over his bigotry of
a cat potentially moving in, while Bugsy is plagued by his own cat rival whose
gang mirrors his own.
“Is It Arf?” (1/30/93) – Artie’s new detective hero inspires Eliot to
give Ace a rival in super sleuth Surelick Bones, who is called in to stop a
rash of theft’s Ace has thus far been unable to.
Season 2:
“Boss Bruiser” (9/18/93) – Bruno’s firing leaves Bowser in charge,
inspiring Eliot to put Brusier in charge of the Vile gang for a while.
“Springer Fever” (9/25/93) – Eliot meets and becomes smitten with
Artie’s mother, leading him to create embarrassing situations for Ace and Rosie
as they try to rescue the mayor’s secretary.
“Much Ado About Mad Dog” (10/2/93) – While Ace is busy with Mad Dog
after saving his life, a rash of flea powder thefts plague the city.
“Of Mutts and Mayors” (10/9/93) – The new mayor strips Ace and Rosie
of their licenses.
“Who Watches the Watch Dog?” (10/16/93) – Reminiscing about his
favorite superhero leads Eliot to introduce the Watch Dog to Dog City.
“The Great Dane Curse” (10/23/93) – Ace thinks Eliot’s idea of dating
Terri is dumb, and Eliot sets out to prove him wrong.
“Out of the Mouths of Pups” (10/30/93) – Artie and some fan mail
inspire Eliot to have the Vile gang kidnap Eddie, which then turns into Eddie
giving them a never-ending lecture.
“Old Dogs, New Tricks” (11/13/93) – Eliot and his old mentor team-up
Ace with his character Sam Spayed, but their differing methods lead to clashes
between Eliot, Ace and their guests.
“Farewell, My Rosie” (11/6/93) – An interview causes Eliot to learn a
lot about Terri, which inspires him to have Ace learn more about Rosie while
investigating her disappearance.
“Sick as a Dog” (11/20/93) – When Eliot is too sick to make his
deadline, his neighbors all take turns trying to finish Eliot’s latest story.
Season 3:
“The New Litter” (9/14/94) – While Ace faces the Vile gang in Jurassic
Bark, Eliot introduces the new segments of “Yves and Steven” and “Rosie and
Dot.”
“Doggy See, Doggy Do” (9/24/94) – Eliot shows Artie learning can be
fun, Ace works on a case involving a kiddy show star, Bugsy reads a twisted
fable, Ace and Mad Dog demonstrate table manners, and Mr. Moogie learns about
math by entering a blackboard.
“Comedy of Horros” (10/1/94) – Artie, Bruno and Eliot believe Bowser
may have gone mad, Rottweiler uses a Sci-Fido monster to try and take over the
world, Mr. Moogie goes on an adventure under the bed, and the Dog City cast
live their own version of an Edgar Allen Poe story.
“Howl the Conquering Hero” (10/8/94) – Eliot helps Artie understand
what makes a real hero, Ace and Bugsy compete for “Hero of the Year”, Mr. Mooge
shrinks into the stomach of the Presidog to remove some bad grass, and The Wolf
Pack searches the supermarket for biscuits.
“Reduce, Reuse, Retrieve” (11/5/94) – Artie makes life miserable to
inspire recycling, Rottweiler steals all the trees in the city, Rosie and Dot
end up on a camping trip next to the Vile gang, Yves’ theft is once again foiled
by Steven.
“Future Schlock” (11/12/94) – Eliot and Artie deal with their fear of
the future, Rottweiler develops a doggie door time portal machine, Yves’
reputation as the greatest cat burglar in the cosmos comes to an end when
Steven’s foils his plot, Rosie and Dot visit an exhibit about the city of the
future.
“No Pain, No Brain” (11/19/94) – Eliot takes up exercising so that he
can run with Terri, Ace investigates the disappearance of athletes ad the Fido
Olympics, Mr. Mookie acts out his own version of The Tortoise and the Hare, and the Woof Pack engage in their own
exercises.
“The Dog Days of Summer Vacation” (11/26/94) – With everyone else
going on vacation, Eliot decides to send Ace and Rosie on one as well with
Eddie and Dot.
While in high school, puppeteer Jim Henson was
tasked with making puppets for WTOP-TV’s Saturday
morning program, The Junior Morning Show. After
reaching college, Henson took a job on Washington, D.C.’s WRC-TV program Sam and Friendswhere
he created his trademark character, Kermit the Frog; although,
at that time, Kermit was depicted as more of a lizard creature made from a
discarded coat of Henson’s mother’s and a halved ping pong ball for eyes.
The original Kermit with the cast of Sam and Friends in the Smithsonian.
In the following years, Henson’s puppets graced numerous commercial spots
and he frequently appeared on the talk show and variety circuit. Henson founded
Muppets, Inc. in 1958, taking on
writer Jerry Juhl in 1961
and puppeteer Frank Oz in
1963; both of whom Henson credited with the development of the humor and
characterizations that became a staple of the Muppets franchise. By the time Henson
moved to New York City, he had begun revolutionizing puppet making by using
flexible fabric-covered foam rubber in order to attain more facial emotions
from his characters. Feeling that his creations straddled the line between puppets
and marionettes, he smashed the words together to give them their “Muppets”
name. Henson’s big break came that same year when his next breakout character, piano-playing
Rowlf the Dog, became
a regular guest on The Jimmy Dean Showbetween
1963 and 1965.
Rowlf with Jimmy Dean on The Jimmy Dean Show.
The next major leap for the Muppets came with Sesame
Streetin 1969, in which
Henson was contracted to create the characters for. Henson was heavily involved
with the production of the first two seasons, even loaning Kermit (who had been
refined and firmly defined as a frog by the time the series began) to star for
a while. At the same time, Henson produced Tales from Muppetland, a
series of TV specials hosted by Kermit that were comedic retellings of classic
fairy tales. In order to avoid being typecast as solely producing children’s
entertainment, Henson’s company joined the fledgling Saturday Night Livein
1975 for a series of
sketches until an inability to gel with the show’s writers ended the
segments in 1976.
The large cast of The Muppet Show.
That year, with financing from Lew Grade, Henson moved
Muppets, Inc. to England and they began work on The Muppet Show; a sketch variety show that introduced and
starred many of the now well-known Muppet characters. The series proved a hit
and ran for five seasons. With The Muppets’ profiles now raised, Henson was
able to produce three movies based on The Muppets: The Muppet Movie(1979),
The Great Muppet Caper(1981)
and The Muppets Take Manhattan(1984). It was that last movie that led to The Muppets entering Saturday
mornings.
Babies Fozzie, Kermit, Piggy, Gonzo, Scooter and Rowlf from The Muppets Take Manhattan.
Manhattan featured
a fantasy sequence in which the characters were depicted as babies in a
nursery. That segment gave executives the long-sought after angle they were
looking for to turn The Muppets into an animated property different enough from
what Henson was already doing with his puppets. Brought to the attention of Marvel Productions
President and Chief Executive Officer Margaret Loesch, they
entered into a deal with Henson to produce the series.
The animated babies Skeeter, Scooter, Rowlf, Bunsen, Beaker, Gonzo, Piggy, Kermit, Fozzie and Animal.
Taking the designs straight from the movie, the
series starred stalwarts Kermit (Frank Welker), the de facto leader of the
group, and Rowlf (Katie Leigh), the musical prodigy. Joining them were Kermit’s
diva love, Miss Piggy
(Laurie O’Brien); the wild and untamed (and aptly named) Animal (Howie Mandel & Dave
Coulier); the truly bizarre hook-nosed Gonzo (Russi Taylor) with his
stuffed chicken, Camilla
(occasionally voiced by Welker, Taylor & Coulier); the bad joke-spewing
comedian, Fozzie (Greg
Berg); and the brainy, tech-savy Scooter
(Berg). Created specifically for the series was Scooter’s tomboyish twin sister,
Skeeter (Mandel &
Welker), and their caretaker called simply Nanny (Barbara Billingsley), who,
like all other adults on the series, was never shown above her shoulders. Dr. Bunsen Honeydew
(Mandel & Coulier) and his long-suffering assistant, Beaker (Welker), made occasional
visits to the nursery.
Kermit outracing the boulder from Raiders of the Lost Ark.
The series was designed to emphasize the power of
imagination. The babies frequently went on fantastic adventures while never
once leaving the nursery. These adventures were usually accompanied by
utilizing stock footage or licensed clips from movies and television shows
(including other Muppet productions). Whenever the adventure became too
dangerous or was interrupted by an outside source, the scene would dissolve and
leave the babies right back in the nursery. Imagination was also used to help
them solve problems, find new ways to play with old toys, or overcoming fears.
Of course, the negative side of imagination was also explored as sometimes
theirs would allow them to be carried away with incorrect conclusions and
assumptions.
After the first season proved a success, Henson and
Marvel tried another series together called Jim
Henson’s Little Muppet Monsters, which featured a return to Henson’s
puppets. CBS eagerly paired it up with Babies
to create the hour-long block Muppets,
Babies & Monsters. However, production and logistics troubles caused only
three episodes of Monsters to be aired before Henson cancelled
it and it was replaced by reruns of Babies.
Remnants of the block’s theme were heard in the Babies closing from that point onward. The series finale also
incorporated the segments “Kermit the Frog: Private Eye” and the animated
version of “Pigs in Space” from the Monsters
episode “Space Cowboys.”
Animal and Gonzo disguised as Spider-Man.
After the second season, Mandel left the series and
his regular characters were distributed amongst Welker and Coulier. For the
third season, CBS expanded the show to encompass a full 90-minute block. While
this partly done due to the popularity of the series, the real reason was
because the heavily-promoted new series, Garbage Pail Kids, was quickly removed from their schedule
amidst protests from Action for Children’s
Television, the National
Coalition on Television Violence, and the Christian
Leaders for Responsible Television. They felt the series served as little
more than a 30-minute commercial for the trading card series on which
it was based, as well as glorified violence while ridiculing the
handicapped.
"Uncles" Statler and Waldorf.
After five episodes of season 4, animation duties
were switched to Korean-based AKOM
Productions for the remainder of its run. Bean Bunny, who first
appeared in the 1986 HBO special The Tale of the Bunny Picnic, and
the two old hecklers from The Muppet Show,
Statler and
Waldorf, began making regular appearances on the show beginning in the
sixth season. Unlike other adults, Statler and Waldorf’s faces were shown. They
were also more friendly and jovial with only the occasional hints of
grumpiness, and both wore hats associated with working on a railroad. All of
the new characters were voiced by Coulier.
Bean Bunny, Rowlf, Fozzie, Animal and Kermit as operatic Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
Throughout its run, the series was nominated for
numerous awards and won several of them. It won the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding
Animated Program from 1985-88, while it was nominated and lost in 1989. It also
won for Outstanding Film Sound Editing in 1985, while losing out in 1987-88,
1990 and 1992. It took home the 1989 Emmy for Outstanding Film Sound Mixing,
losing that in 1986-87 and 1990. It was also nominated in 1986 for Outstanding
Achievement in Music Direction and Composition. Barbara Billingsly was
nominated for Outstanding Performer in a Children’s Series in both 1989 and
1990. It was nominated in 1985, 1988 and 1990 for a Humanitas Prize in the Children’s
Animation Category, only taking home the 1985 award. It also took home the 1987
Young Artist Awards for
Exceptional Family Animation Series or Specials.
In 1987 McDonald’s
released their first
set of Happy Meal
toys based on the show, with Kermit, Piggy, Gonzo and Fozzie each riding an
interchangeable vehicle. In Canada, Animal was added to the set and Gonzo was
depicted as barefoot. For the younger crowd, PVC figurines of Kermit and Piggy
and roller skates were available. In 1988, McDonald’s had two promotions. The
first included three books
featured in Happy Meal boxes that looked like Kermit, Piggy and Fozzie. Around
the holidays, McDonald’s offered a set of “Holiday
Huggable” plushes of Kermit, Piggy and Fozzie that were available for
purchase with a Happy Meal. In 1994, a second set of plushes were released for
the Mexican market, featuring Gonzo in place of Piggy and new designs for
Kermit and Fozzie. A final
set of toys were released in 1990 featuring the same line-up (minus Animal)
each riding a new vehicle. McDonald’s released one final toy
of Kermit and Piggy in 1994 to commemorate the 15th anniversary of
the Happy Meal. Their piece could connect with 14 others exemplifying popular
Happy Meal franchises to form a long train.
In 1989, Babies entered into syndication until
partway through the seventh season and continued on in reruns following its
final episode for the next decade; airing on FOX
channels and its affiliates primarily. Maintaining its popularity, additional
merchandise was made. In 1993, Golden Press released magic slates
while Eden Toys had a line of plush
rattles. In 1997, Toy Biz made their own line of plush
toys, while NANCO produced a
set as amusement park prizes in the early 2000s. In 2003, Toy Play released
a series
of plush dolls in various sizes: clip-ons, beanies, 10 inch and 24 inch.
The 10 inch came with a DVD of a single uncut episode, the only DVD release of
the series thus far due to the rights issues involved with the clips used in
the imagination sequences. Between 2004 and 2006, PC Treasures, Inc., Multimedia
Entertainment, Jim
Henson Interactive, Compedia and Brighter
Minds Media produced a series of educational
CD-ROM games featuring the Babies.
VHS collection box.
While no DVDs were
released outside of the ones offered with Toy Play’s 2003 plush doll
line, Babies was featured across
several VHS
collections. 18 VHSs were released in the United States between 1993 and
1995, with an additional
four through McDonald’s and another three from Video Buddy Interactive. The
United
Kingdom and Australia
each had their own releases, leading to a total of 25 of the episodes released
to home video. Two records were released featuring music from the show. In
1985, Parker Bros./Columbia Records released Rocket to the Stars, which featured an all-new story written by
Saroyan that interweaved songs from the show as part of the narrative. In 1987,
Music is
Everywherejust featured extended versions of the songs. Several songs
were also featured on the 1987 compilation album Favorite
Songs from Jim Henson’s Muppetsfrom Silver Eagle
Records, whichhad selections from every Muppet-related production
at the time. In 1993, when Jim Henson Records joined together with BMG, Rock It to the Starswas re-released onto CD with a new
title.
Scooter reintroduces Skeeter in The Muppet Show comic by Roger Langridge.
In 1990, Kermit,
Piggy and Gonzo appeared in the drug prevention special Cartoon
All-Stars to the Rescueamongst other assembled Saturday morning
characters. A Muppet Family Christmasfeatured puppet versions of the
characters, minus Skeeter, in a home movie that the adult Muppets watch. The
scene was cut from the home video release due to a failure to obtain the rights
for the song “Santa
Clause is Coming to Town.” Skeeter made her only non-Babies appearance during the “Family Reunion” story arc of BOOM!
Studios’The Muppet Showcomic series by Roger
Langridge in 2009.
"We're going back...to our childhood!"
Muppet Babies ushered
in a new trope known as babyfication that spanned through the rest of the 80s
and early 90s. Babyfication was the process of taking established adult
characters and depicting them as younger. Seeing how successful the show was,
other studios looked to their own properties to try and emulate that success. Muppet
Babies also became part of the reboot trend of the early 21st
Century as a reboot began airing in 2018 on Disney Junior. The new Muppet Babiesutilized
computer animation that simulated the puppet appearances of the original
characters. Returning regular characters included Kermit (Matt Danner), Piggy (Melanie Harrison), Fozzie (Eric Bauza), Gonzo (Ben Diskin), Animal (Dee Bradley Baker) and Nanny (Jenny Slate). Newly created for
the show was Summer (Jessica
DiCicco), an artistic penguin.
EPISODE GUIDE:
Season 1:
"Noisy Neighbors” (9/15/84) – The babies have to keep Animal from
waking up their neighbor, a police officer who works nights.
“Who’s Afraid of the Big, Bad Dark?” (9/22/84) – The babies try to
help Beaker overcome his fear of the dark.
“Dental Hyjinks” (9/29/84) – Fozzie is afraid of the dentist so the
babies try to help him pull out his loose tooth.
“Raiders of the Lost Muppet” (10/6/84) – Animal vanishes during a game
of hide and seek.
“Scooter’s Hidden Talent” (10/13/84) – Scooter can’t figure out the
talent that makes him special.
“The Case of the Missing Chicken” (10/20/84) – Camilla goes missing.
“Eight Take-Away One Equals Panic” (10/27/84) – The babies think Nanny
is planning to get rid of one of them.
“What Do You Want to Be When You Grow Up?” (11/3/84) – Kermit is
trying to figure out what he wants to be when he grows up.
“Close Encounters of the Frog Kind” (11/10/84) – Kermit’s cousin Robin
visits and escapes his bowl.
“Gonzo’s Video Show” (11/17/84) – The babies go Hollywood by creating
their own movies.
“Fun Park Fantasies” (11/24/84) – Excited about going to the amusement
park, the babies dream about what it will be like.
“From a Galaxy Far, Far Away” (12/1/84) – When a creature enters the
nursery, the babies assume it’s an alien and work to return it home.
“Good, Clean, Fun” (12/8/84) – The babies try to make up for breaking
a lamp and end up causing more problems.
Season 2:
“Once Upon an Egg Timer” (9/14/85) – The babies tell stories about
searching for Rowlf’s lost voice.
“Piggy’s Hyper-Activity Book” (9/21/85) – The babies find themselves
inside Piggy’s activity book on a rainy day.
“Fozzie’s Last Laugh” (10/5/85) – When Piggy gives Fozzie an “F” for
joking around while they play school, Fozzie decides to give up his comedy
career.
“The Great Cookie Robbery” (10/12/85) – Tired of being ridiculed by
the others, Gonzo keeps a box of cookies Nanny gave them for himself.
“Out of this World History” (10/19/85) – The babies use their
imaginations to explore history through Nanny’s book until Gonzo decides to
take them all to Planet X.
“Snow White and the Seven Muppets” (9/28/85) – The babies decide to
put on their own production of Snow White,
but Piggy is jealous she lost the title role to Skeeter.
“I Want My Muppet TV!” (10/26/85) – With the TV on the fritz, the
babies make their own out of a cardboard box.
“Musical Muppets” (11/2/85) – The babies all write their own songs to
enter in a contest, but the tape breaks and putting it back together jumbles
everything up.
“What’s New at the Zoo?” (11/9/85) – Rowlf doesn’t want to go to the
zoo, feeling bad for the caged animals.
“The Great Muppet Cartoon Show” (11/16/85) – The babies make their own
cartoon flip books, which Nanny then lets them turn into actual cartoons.
“The Muppet Museum of Art” (11/23/85) – The babies decide to open
their own art museum when Skeeter’s hurt ankle cancels their trip to the real
one.
“By the Book” (11/30/85) – Nanny provides the babies with books to
keep then entertained while they wait for the repainted nursery to dry.
“When You Wish Upon a Muppet” (12/7/85) – Animal plays genie when
Kermit and Piggy fish a lamp out of a box.
Season 3:
“Pigarella” (9/13/86) – Piggy imagines herself as Cinderella when she
has to clean up the kitchen after getting caught trying to return food the
others snuck out.
“The Best Friend I Never Had” (9/20/86) – The babies imagine their
perfect friends.
“The Weirdo Zone” (9/27/86) – Gonzo shows the babies what it’s like to
be weird.
“Muppets in Toyland” (10/4/86) – At first seeming cool, Scooter’s new
toy robot becomes disruptive in the nursery.
“The Muppet Broadcasting Company” (10/11/86) – To entertain themselves
during a TV outage, Nanny introduces the babies to old time radio shows.
“Kermit Goes to Washington” (10/18/86) – In order to establish rules
in the nursery, the babies elect Kermit as the nursery president.
“Fozzie’s Family Tree” (10/25/86) – Fozzie’s tomato plant grows into a
family tree, and he climbs it believing it to be his family tree.
“The Daily Muppet” (11/1/86) – The babies decide to publish their own
newspaper in order to replace Nanny’s ruined one.
“Scooter’s Uncommon Cold” (11/8/86) – The babies shrink themselves
down to enter Scooter’s body and fight his cold virus.
“Treasure Attic” (11/15/86) – The babies play pirate in the attic.
“Around the Nursery in 80 Days” (11/22/86) – In order to avoid a
horrible replacement sitter, the babies take Nanny on a pretend trip around the
world so she doesn’t need a real one.
“Fine Feathered Enemies” (11/29/86) – Nanny introduces a rude talking
parrot to the nursery.
“Muppet Goose” (12/6/86) – Nanny reads the babies to sleep with
nursery rhymes.
“Bad Luck Bear” (12/13/86) – Fozzie breaks a mirror and is worried
about seven years of bad luck.
“Of Mice and Muppets” (12/20/86) – The babies accidentally let Officer
Carruthers’ pet mouse escape from its cage.
“Back to the Nursery” (12/27/86) – The babies go back in time to
re-take a picture of Nanny as a waitress that they accidentally ruined.
Season 4:
“Muppetland” (9/19/87) – The babies make their own theme parks.
“Water Babies” (9/26/87) – A new aquarium has the babies imagining
exploring beneath the ocean.
“The Incredible Shrinking Weirdo” (10/3/87) – When Gonzo’s basketball
jersey suddenly becomes too big for him, the babies all think he’s shrinking.
“Where No Muppet Has Gone Before” (10/10/87) – On a camping trip,
Bunsen’s lecture about space sends the babies there in their imaginations.
“Journey to the Center of the Nursery” (10/17/87) – The babies head
into the Earth to find Fozzie’s lost skate key.
“This Little Piggy Went to Hollywood” (10/24/87) – Piggy imagines she
goes on Star Search and becomes a famous movie star.
“My Muppet Valentine” (10/31/86) – When Nanny loses Rowlf’s
Valentine’s Day cookie, the babies try to make it up to him with a surprise.
“Invasion of the Muppet Snackers” (11/7/87) – The babies think the
horrible thing Nanny is mixing up is destined to be their next snack.
“Twinkle Toe Muppets” (11/14/87) – Scooter tries to figure out what
kind of dancing he likes.
“Weirdo for the Prosecution” (11/21/87) – Gonzo is on trial for
stealing cookies.
“Muppet Island” (11/28/87) – As Nanny cleans leaving the babies stuck
in the nursery, the babies imagine they’re on an island.
“The Frog Who Knew Too Much” (12/5/87) – Kermit has to try to keep
from telling the others about Nanny’s secret surprise for them.
“Beach Blanket Babies” (12/12/87) – The babies have to help Fozzie
overcome his fear of swimming.
“Old MacKermit Had a Farm” (12/19/87) – The babies imagine themselves
in various professions that will allow them to replenish the blueberry muffin
supply.
“Adventures in Muppet-Sitting” (12/26/87) – The babies are tasked with
babysitting Robin.
“The House That Muppets Built” (1/2/88) – The babies set out to
redesign and fix Piggy’s wrecked dollhouse.
“Masquerading Muppets” (1/9/88) – The babies make costumes for a
party.
“Nanny’s Day Off” (1/16/88) – As a thanks, the babies give Nanny the
day off and handle her chores.
Season 5:
“Muppets Not Included” (9/10/88) – A strange objects leave the babies
to wonder what kind of functions it has.
“Beauty and the Schnoz” (9/17/88) – After being insulted by Piggy,
Scooter and Rowlf help Gonzo see his own beauty.
“The Pig Who Would Be Queen” (9/24/88) – The babies pretend to be
various fairy tale characters.
“Is There a Muppet in the House?” (10/1/88) – After telling the babies
about a scary movie he saw, Rowlf disappears during naptime.
“Slipping Beauty” (10/8/88) – Piggy is separated from the others
because of chicken pox and is given a walkie talkie to be entertained.
“Muppet Baby Boom” (10/15/88) – The babies prepare to meet Mrs.
Mitchell’s new baby.
“Scooter by Any Other Name” (10/22/88) – Gonzo helps Scooter reinvent
himself when he’s sick of being book-smart.
“He’s A Wonderful Frog” (10/29/88) – The babies think Kermit is moving
away and set up a tribute for him.
“Elm Street Babies” (11/5/88) – Dreams wake the babies up in the
middle of the night.
“Plan 8 From Outer Space” (11/12/88) – When the Royal Family is
announced as having trouble finding a nanny, the babies believe aliens are
abducting nannies.
“Junkyard Muppets” (11/19/88) – A mess in the nursery has the babies
looking for their possessions.
“The Air Conditioner at the End of the Galaxy” (11/26/88) – When the
air conditioner breaks, the babies imagine they’re in the jungle looking for a
cool place.
“Bug-Busting Babies” (12/3/88) – The babies hunt for the bug messing
up Scooter’s computer.
Season 6:
“This Old Nursery” (9/16/89) – The babies find a time capsule in the
wall.
“And Now A Word From Our Muppets” (9/23/89) – The babies make ads for
their items at Nanny’s garage sale.
“Six-to-Eight Weeks” (9/30/89) – The babies daydream about their new
playhouse.
“The Green Ranger” (10/7/89) – Kermit’s favorite show is cancelled.
“Not Necessarily the Babies” (10/14/89) – The babies make their own
news program.
“Comic Capers” (10/21/89) – The babies journey through the Sunday
funnies.
“Faster Than a Speeding Weirdo” (10/28/89) – Camilla ends up damaged
after Gonzo’s latest stunt.
“Skeeter and the Wolf” (11/4/89) – Skeeter leads the search in the
attic for Nanny’s record.
“Romancing the Weirdo” (11/11/89) – Finding an old typewriter inspires
Gonzo to write.
“The New Adventures of Kermo Polo” (11/18/89) – The babies imagine
they’re famous explorers.
“Goosetown Babies” (11/25/89) – The babies try to help Mother Goose
fix Goosetown.
“It’s Only Pretendo” (12/2/89) – It’s Gonzo vs. Piggy for the video game
championship.
“Quoth the Weirdo” (12/9/89) – The babies read poetry to Bean.
“Operators are Standing By” (12/16/89) – The babies wonder who was on
the phone that Animal hung up on.
“Babes in Toyland” (12/23/89) – Scooter’s lecture sends the babies
into the world of Greek mythology.
“Puss ‘n’ Boots ‘n’ Babies” (12/30/89) – The babies help babysit
Officer Caruther’s pet cat.
“Muppets of Invention” (1/6/90) – The babies are encouraged to invent.
“A Punch Line in the Tummy” (1/13/90) – Fozzie’s effort to hear his
own jokes only lets him hear the others insulting him.
Season 7:
“Muppet Babies: The Next Generation” (9/15/90) – The babies wonder
what the future will be like.
“Buckskin Babies” (9/22/90) – The babies journey to the Old West.
“Sing a Song of Superheroes” (9/29/90) – The babies become Operatic
super heroes to find Nanny’s missing water.
“Gonzee’s Playhouse Channel” (10/6/90) – The babies put on their own
children’s programming.
“Kermit Pan” (10/13/90) – The babies revisit the world of Peter Pan.
“Whose Tale is it, Anyway?” (10/20/90) – Piggy becomes jealous of
their new neighbor Janice’s ability to read.
“At the Movies” (10/27/90) – The babies fantasize about visiting
Statler and Waldorf’s new theater.
“In Search of the Bronzed Beetle” (11/3/90) – Statler and Waldorf’s
beetle broach goes missing, prompting the babies to try and find it.
“The Transcontinental Whoo-Whoo” (11/10/90) – The babies build a
railroad.
“Get Me to the Perch on Time” (11/17/90) – The babies deliver the mail
for an injured carrier pigeon.
“Bearly Alone Babies” (11/24/90) – Nanny prepares for a storm while
Fozzie prepares for a burglar.
“Remote Control Cornballs” (12/1/90) – Bunsen and Beaker’s invention
scrambles everyone’s favorite TV shows.
“Nice to Have Gnome You” (12/8/90) – The babies help Piggy rewrite the
library book she lost.
“Happy Birthday Uncle Piggy” (12/15/90) – The babies make a surprise
party for Statler.
“Hats! Hats! Hats!” (12/22/90) – Statler and Waldorf bring hats to the
nursery.
“Eight Flags Over the Nursery” (12/29/90) – In anticipation of a new
amusement park opening, the babies imagine their own.
